Enough truly was enough
My week, last week, started in pure frustration and anger. I started the week, like many of you, with the news that hate mongers had descended upon my beloved Quad Cities, held what I believe was simply a Klan rally minus the white robes and hoods, thinly veiled it as a “political forum,” found a so-called church to host and seemingly got away with disseminating some truly vile and dangerous rhetoric. The same type of rhetoric that has gotten countless people who look like me beaten, tortured and killed.
By got away with it, I don’t mean to imply there was any sort of legal or civil recourse that could’ve stopped these people. They were well within their rights to sit there with the blessing of the local Republican Party and the backing of a candidate for U.S. Congress (stay woke Iowa) and spew their filth, poison and hate. By the way, if you think I’m exaggerating, just listen for yourself here.
They did it, but they got caught. Their actions were blasted on the front page of the local newspapers for the whole Quad Cities to see, with subsequent follow-up coverage proving just how deep the hate burrowed and precisely who was behind it. Many of us took to our personal platforms to denounce this shit and call it out. A protest of the church was promptly planned. The court of public opinion was certainly speaking loudly. Yet, there was virtual silence from local municipal leaders, elected officials, business leaders and area lead organizations. Those voices that, in my opinion, wield the greatest local influence were by and large missing. There were certainly exceptions, but sill no collective show of strength. And that simply baffled me. It pissed me off.
I considered that silence to be consent, and I simply couldn’t live with that. So, I spoke out, voiced my frustration using this exact same platform. You can read my initial feelings here. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said “there comes a time when silence is betrayal.” In this case, I certainly felt betrayed. I have spent countless personal and professional hours working with and volunteering for organizations that had claimed to me they cared about making the Quad Cities a more welcoming and inclusive community, however none of them seemingly had our backs in this. How could it be that none of them were willing to stand up and speak out against this bullshit “political forum” and its hateful rhetoric? I felt betrayed to my core.
More days went by. Protests went by. Many of us continued to speak out. And then something amazing happened. Action began to happen! My phone began to buzz, and buzz, and buzz. The calls, texts, DMs and emails began to pour in. And here we are. So, with the same energy that I voiced my frustration a week ago, I now voice my elation.
I want to thank every individual and every organization that heeded the call to respond. Thank you for your efforts. There was a part of me that wanted to stand up and scream “too little, too late!” But that was my petty side. My more rational side prevailed this time. My rational side knows it is never too late, and it is never too little. They say pressure bursts pipes, and this pipe has burst in a magnificent way. I’m now seeing statement after statement, post after post, even media coverage denouncing racism and hatred. And that’s powerful. That’s what the Quad Cities needed to see and needs to continue to see. What a show of force!
I have no doubt the bigots will think twice before planning their next meeting within our borders. They will eventually move along with those pitiful flyers and pieces of literature they so cowardly spread around our streets. Our voices are so much stronger than theirs, but only when we use our voices loudly and collectively. They are cowards. If we refuse to be, we’ll root them out and push them out. May we all take a lesson from this.
“Your life begins to end the moment you start being silent about the things that matter.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.